No yelling, and no offence, just allow me to disagree. I had lived exactly there (Torrington Place) for 5 years before moving further north this June, and I know this particular encampment quite well (at least from a neighbour's point of view): it used to be on my way from Goodge Street to Torrington Place, and also it's next door to a daily street food market at the American Church. Here are my thoughts:
1. I don't suppose the reason it appeared there is the change in traffic on the Tottenham Court Road. Instead, I suppose it's a spill-off from another place where homeless prefer to rough sleep, namely Heal's on the opposite side of the street. They've been there forever (well, when I moved there in 2019, they were already there), as the building's architecture gives a bit of shelter in nasty weather.
2. I can't remember any nuisance from them. They keep to themselves, never solicit, and if there's any conflicts, it's between them. They might be sometimes loud, but aren't we all sometimes?
3. The rules change on Tottenham Court Road meant just one thing, traffic-wise: more jams on Gower Street which became unbelievably congested.
4. I might be completely wrong, but I tend to see more homeless camps of busy streets rather on quiet ones.
Really good questions here. I'm not sure of the answers but the important thing is to ask tough questions about cause & effect. I hope your piece gets more people thinking. Perhaps councils need to consider more than traffic-flow in their modelling / projections.
No yelling, and no offence, just allow me to disagree. I had lived exactly there (Torrington Place) for 5 years before moving further north this June, and I know this particular encampment quite well (at least from a neighbour's point of view): it used to be on my way from Goodge Street to Torrington Place, and also it's next door to a daily street food market at the American Church. Here are my thoughts:
1. I don't suppose the reason it appeared there is the change in traffic on the Tottenham Court Road. Instead, I suppose it's a spill-off from another place where homeless prefer to rough sleep, namely Heal's on the opposite side of the street. They've been there forever (well, when I moved there in 2019, they were already there), as the building's architecture gives a bit of shelter in nasty weather.
2. I can't remember any nuisance from them. They keep to themselves, never solicit, and if there's any conflicts, it's between them. They might be sometimes loud, but aren't we all sometimes?
3. The rules change on Tottenham Court Road meant just one thing, traffic-wise: more jams on Gower Street which became unbelievably congested.
4. I might be completely wrong, but I tend to see more homeless camps of busy streets rather on quiet ones.
Hi Victor. Very good to learn of your experience. I will make sure those of your fellow locals who are less happy see your comment.
Really good questions here. I'm not sure of the answers but the important thing is to ask tough questions about cause & effect. I hope your piece gets more people thinking. Perhaps councils need to consider more than traffic-flow in their modelling / projections.